WASHINGTON (December 17, 2013) -- The Government Accountability Office today issued a highly critical report exposing just how much the U.S. Department of Interior has been asleep at the switch, letting the oil and gas industries pay next-to-nothing in royalties to the government while extracting energy from public lands for profit.

Following is a statement by Bobby McEnaney, senior analyst in the Land and Wildlife program at the Natural Resources Defense Council:

“This kid-glove treatment of industry must end. The American people deserve better, including a fair share of royalties from resources that belong to all of us. Charging the lowest royalties in the entire world is fiscally irresponsible. Interior should immediately develop rules that bring royalties up to a fair market value.”

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 2 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.